Internal combustion engine



Oct. 27, 1936. PMA TANNER 2,058,526

t INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE Filed Dec. 31, 1934 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Oct,27, 1936. P. A. TANNER I INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE Filed Dec. 31-, 19342 Sheets-Sheet 2 D R A T E R lllll Patented Oct. '27, 1936 UNITEDSTATES.

V aosaszs mama cosmos-non ENGINE Philip A. Tanner, Wankegan, Ill.,asslgnor to Johnson Motor Company, Wankegan, 11]., a corporation ofDelaware Application December 31, 1934, Serial No. 759,862

Claims. (01. 123-73) This invention relates in general to an improvementin internal combustion engines and more particularly totwo-cycle enginesin which oil is mixedwith the gasoline for lubrication of the 5 engineparts.

An important object of the invention is in the provision of means forimproving the lubrication of an engine of this type.

A further object of the invention is to prevent l0 excess oil beingcarried into the combustion chamber and from fouling and interferingwith the spark plugs.

Another object of the invention is in the provision of means forpreventing excess oil from accumulating in the crank case 'and' fordischarging it therefrom. V v

A still further object of the invention is in the provision of means forvarying the lubricating conditions dependent upon throttle or spark (orboth) adjustments.

In the drawings, Fig. 1 is a sectional view of a two-cycle engineembodying the invention;

Fig. 2 is another sectional view of the engine shown in Fig. 1substantially at right anglesthereto;

Figs. 3 and 4 are detail sectional views showing the position of thevalve for slow and high speed operation respectively; 1

Fig. 5 is a view, partly in section, showing an oil control valveconnected for operation with a carburetor;

Fig. 6 is a plan view of an oil control valve connected for operationwith the spark adjusting plate of a magneto; and

a carburetor control, and magneto controlling means all operated inconjunction.

When an engine of thistype runs at high speed a comparatively highratioof oil to gasoline is 40 necessary for proper lubrication. The oilis carried along in the mixture of gasoline, vapor, oil globules andair, into the cylinder where the mixture is burned or carriedout throughthe exhaust port. Under the high temperatures de- 5 veloped by suchoperation the excess oil does not foul and short-circuit the sparkplugs.

When the ordinary engineis then throttled and slowed down, lesslubrication is necessary; the excess oil carried into the combustionchamber 50 is neither thoroughly burned nor scavenged through theexhaust port and it tends to collect or deposit on the insulator of thespark plug, causing short-circuiting of the plug, misfiring and stoppingof the engine.

55 If a spark plug is used that will withstand the Fig. 7 is a sectionalview of an oil control valve,

temperature conditions of high speed in full throt- 'tle without gettingsufllciently hot as to cause preignition, then at slow speed and closedthrottle it will foul and short-circuit. If a spark plug case 1 in whicha crank shaft 8 is rotatable car- 15 rying crank discs or arms 9connected by a crank pin II to which one end of a piston rod II isjournaled, the other end of the rod being connected toa piston l2reciprocating in the cylinder. 20

At one side of the cylinder casing is a. fuel inlet l3 leading from thecrank case and terminating in a port or ports I 4 within the cylinderand at the other side of the cylinder isan exhaust port l5 for theexhaust gases. In the outer endof the cylinder is a spark plug I6 forigniting the charge which is admitted to the combustion chamber throughthe fuel passage l3 by a movement of the piston therein in a well-knownconventional manner.

The present invention comprises a passage 20 formed in the wall of thecasing and communicating with the end of the fuel passage l3 in thecylinder wall. This passage 20 communicates with a passage 2| formed inthe crank shaft 8 and extending through one of the arms 9 andterminating inan open port 22 located centrally thereoi' in the crankcase chamber.

Extending laterally from the passage 20 and opening at the periphery ofthe crank case cham- 40 her is a port 23 and located lnthe chamber atthis position isa rotatable valve 25 having a stem 28 extendingexternally of the casing for rotational movement by means of an arm 21attached to the stem, or any other suitable operating means, and thevalve being movable by means of the arm either to close the port 23 andto open the passage 20 to form communication with the fuel passages l3and 2| to the central portion of a the crank case, for slow speedoperation as shown in Fig. 3, or to close the passage 20, opening theport 23 for direct communication with the fuel passage I 3 from theperiphery of the crank case as shown in Fig. 4. With this constructionthe valve 28 opens a direct passage from the periph cry of the crankcasing at high speed and with the throttle open, there is no excess oilunder this condition as it-is carried out through the pascentrifugalforce of the whirling mixture in the crank case to the outside thereof.At slow speed sage l3 to the cylinder. At slow speed with the throttleclosed the fuel mixture is taken from the center of the'crank casethrough the passage 2|. The opening 22 of the slow speed passage 2| islocated centrally of the crank case so that little oil will enter it asthe oil'in the mixture is in relatively heavy globules which are thrownby ber 30' connected by. a passage 3| with the interior of the crankcase having a ball valve 32 enclosed by a casing 33 and pressed toclosing position by a spring 34. In the casing areoutlets 35throughwhich 'oil from the interior of thecrank case may escape throughthe check valve. Whenevercompression takes place in the crank case andsuflicient oil has collected therein to flow intothe passage 3| of therelief valve, a small portion of the oil, or other liquid, .is forcedthrough the check valve andso out of the crank case. This oil isdisposed of by .pipes leading from the casing 33 or the openings 35thereof in any suitable manner.

In order to make the excess oil control entirely automatic and dependentupon either throttle or spark variation, or controlling all threetogether,

the stem26 of the control valve 25 is provided with an arm 40 (Figs. 5and 6) attached by a set 'screw 5|, pivoted to one end of a link 42, andthe other endof the link is pivoted to an arm 43 at- 45' tached to thethrottle valve of a carbureter 44.

Or the engine may have a magneto with a rotating part aflixed to theshaft 8, and an adjustable armature plate 5| movable about the shaft bya projecting arm 52 to advance or retard the engine spark in controllingthe speed. To this plate is pivotally connected one end of a 'link 53,the other'end being pivoted to an arm 54 connected to the control valve25, so that the valve is opened and closed in accordance with the manualcontrol of the engine speed by the operation of the arm 52. 3

Both the carbureter control arm 43 and the magneto speed control'plate5| may be connected by their links 42 and 53 respectively to anoperating arm 56 of the valve 25, as shown in Fig.

'7, for interconnecting these parts for joint and synchronous operation.The movement of one part correspondingly actuates all the others, butthe normal manual operation is by the magneto plate arm 52.

This constructiontherefore provides a simple and efiective means foroperation at'both high and low speed; suiiicient lubrication is providedfor high speed operation; excess lubrication is prevented at low speedoperation; fouling of the .spark plugs and the attendant difficultiesare overcome; the collectionof superfluous lubrication or liquid in thecrank case is avoided; and operation of the lubricant controlling meansmay u be entirely automatic and dependent upon other speed controllingmeans. Although the valve 25 is described as entirely open or entirelyclosed with respect to the port 23 and. the passage 20, it is obviousthat it may be partially open to both of them by placing it in anintermediate position. The operation of this valve however will causemore efficient lubrication of the engine and therefore greater operatingefilciency at the highest, lowest and intermediate speeds.

I claim:

1. A combustion engine-having a compression chamber and an explosionchamber, means forming a passage between the chambers with an entry atthe periphery and another adjacent the center of the compressionchamber, and one or more valves in the passages to control both entriesto the passage.

. 2. A two-cycle, internal combustion engine comprisinga-pre-compression chamber, a crank rotatable therein, an explosioncylinder, means forming a passage between the-chamber and the cylinderhaving an entry substantially at or in line with the center of the crankand another ontry at the outer periphery of the compression chamber anda valve in the passage for controlling the flow of a combustible mixtureeither from the center' or, the periphery of ,the chamber through the.passage to the explosion cylinder.

3. A two-cycle, internal combustion engine having a compression chamberand-an explosion chamber, means forming a transfer passage between thechambers with an oil carrying entry and an oil free entry thereto fromthe compression chamber, valve means to control the entries, anautomatic drainage valve in the compression chamber, the valvepermitting excess oil and other liquid to be ejected from said chamberdue to pressure therein.

- 4. A two-cycle internal combustion engine having a compression chamberand an explosion cyling a crank case compression chamber and anexplosion cylinder, a piston movable in the cylinder and a crank for thepiston rotatable in the crank case, a'transfer passage between thechamber and the cylinder having means forming an entry substantially atthe center of the crank case and another at the periphery thereof andvalve .meansto 'control both entries to the passage for varying theamount of compressed charge which is taken from the center 'or from "theperiphery of the 'crank case and thereby varying the lubrication carriedwith the fuel charge into the combustion cylinder.

6. In an internal combustion engine having a compression chamber, anexplosion chamber, means forming a transfer passage between thechambers, a control valve in the passage, a magand a crank shaft mountedto rotate in the crank case and to tend to efiect centrifugal separationinder, means forming a transfer passage between of oil from gasestherein, of a piston reciprocable in the combustion chamber and adaptedto compress alternately the gases in said crank case and said chamber,said piston being operatively connected with the crank shaft, meansproviding a transfer passage leading to the combustion chamber andcommunicating at a plurality of points with the crank case, one .of saidpoints being nearer than the other to the axis of the crank shaft, andvalve means controlling communication of said passage with said crankcase at at least one of said points.

8. An internal combustion engine comprising in combination a cylinderproviding a combustion chamber, a crank case communicating therewith, apiston reciprocable in the cylinder to compress gases alternately in thecombustion chamber and in the crankcase, a crank shaft with which saidpiston is operatively connected, said crankshaft being rotatable in thecrank case and tending to effectcentrifugal separation of oil from gasescontained in the crank case, means providing a transfer passage leadingto said combustion chamber and provided with branches separatelycommunicating with the ,crank case, one of said branches opening at apoint adjacent the axis of said'crank shaft and another of said branchesopening from the crank case at a point remote from the axis ,of said inthe crank case, a crank shaft with which said piston is operativelyconnected, said crank shaft being rotatable in the crank case andtending to opening from the crank case at a point remote 1 from the axisof said crank shaft, and valve means forselectively controlling thecommunication of said passage with said crank case through one of saidbranches or the other, together with engine speed control means havingadvanced and retracted positions and a connection from said engine speedcontrol means to said valve means for actuating said valve means to aposition such that in the advanced position of the speed control meanssaid valve means will place said passage in communication with the crankcase through the branch opening remote from said crank shaft axis.

10. An internal combustion engine comprising in combination acylinder'providing a combustion chamber,- a crank case communicatingtherewith, a piston reciprocable in the cylinder to compress gasesalternately in the combustion chamber and in the crank case, a crankshaft with which said piston is operatively connected, said crank shaftbeing rotatable in the crank case and tending to effect centrifugalseparation of oil from gases contained in the crankcase, means providinga transfer passageleading to said cornbustion chamber and provided withbranches separately communicating with the crank case, one of saidbranches opening at a point adjacent the axis of said crank shaft andanother of said branches opening from the crank case at a point remotefrom the axis of said crank shaft, and valve means for selectivelycontrolling the communication of said passage with said crank casethrough one of said branches or the other, together with engine speedcontrol means having advanced and retracted positions and a connectionfrom said engine speed control means to said opens to the crank caseadjacent the axis of said crank shaft.

PHILIP A; TANNER.

